Recently Honolulu has been making great leaps in the education level of its population. Currently 84.8% of the population has a high school diploma and 27.9% hold either a bachelor’s degree or higher. Honolulu has 53 elementary schools, 14 middle schools, 11 public high schools, six public charter schools, and 53 private schools.
Higher Education: Hawaii Pacific University, founded in 1965, is the largest private university in the state and offers over 50 undergraduate and 11 graduate degree programs. HPU is nationally recognized by the National League of Nursing and the Executive MBA Council. HPU has many campuses to choose from, from the urban downtown location to the residential campus nestled in the foothills of the Ko’olau mountains. Students journey from over 100 different countries for an American education at a liberal arts institution, making HPU one of the most diverse campuses in the world.
Chaminade University of Honolulu is a small Catholic university that is sponsored by the Province of the United States of the Society of Mary (Marianists). It is the only Catholic university in Hawaii and is located in the suburbs, only two miles from Waikiki beach. Chaminade offers 22 undergraduate degree programs, five graduate degree programs, and numerous professional certificate programs. The University of Hawaii is comprised of three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment training center, and many research facilities. Their main campuses and headquarters are located in Honolulu and collectively HU offers 616 programs, 123 of which are devoted to bachelor degrees, 92 for master’s, 53 for doctoral, 4 for post baccalaureate, 115 for associate’s, and 3 for first professional degrees. Enrollment for the total HU system is over 50,000, with about 44,000 of those being undergraduates. The Brigham Young University Hawaii is affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and has an enrollment of 2,400 students from over 70 different countries. U.S. News & World Report ranks BYU-Hawaii as one of the best institutions of higher learning in the western United States.